This 15-minute Greek salad features traditional ingredients: tomatoes, cucumber, red onions, and feta cheese. I also added creamy avocado and briny capers. The dressing is made with lemon juice, olive oil, and fresh herbs. This vibrant Summer salad pairs well with anything, especially grilled meats, chicken, seafood, and pasta.
Greek salad is a Summer staple!
If you're looking for a fresh salad to add to your collection of healthy Summer recipes, you'll love this colorful Greek salad made with tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, red onions, feta cheese, and capers. It features basic ingredients, yet it's so delicious and looks sophisticated on a dinner table. This salad can be served as a side dish, appetizer, or a light meatless and gluten-free meal. It's perfect for sharing with the crowd during summer events, such as picnics, potlucks, block parties, and BBQs.
Classic Greek salad dressing
The salad dressing is made from scratch with just a few simple ingredients: extra virgin olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and fresh herbs (chopped fresh basil and snipped fresh thyme). If you don't have fresh herbs, you can use dried oregano, dried dill, dried thyme, dried Italian seasoning, or Herbs from Provance instead. Combine all dressing ingredients in a small mason jar, close it with the lid, and shake vigorously to emulsify.
Greek Salad
Ingredients
Salad dressing
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme snipped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Greek salad
- 6 oz yellow cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- 6 oz red cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- 1 large cucumber quartered
- ⅓ cup red onion sliced
- 1 avocado peeled, cored, and diced into small pieces
- 3 tablespoons capers
- 4 oz Feta cheese
Instructions
Make dressing
- Combine the olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, chopped fresh basil, and fresh thyme (snipped) in a small mason jar. Close with the lid. Shake vigorously. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Assemble the salad
- In a large bowl, combine sliced cherry tomatoes, quartered cucumber slices, sliced red onion, diced avocado, and capers. Add feta cheese - some of it cubed, some of it crumbled. Toss with dressing, until well-combined.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Variations
Traditional Greek salad features tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, red onions, feta cheese, and olives. My version of Greek salad includes avocado and capers instead of olives. Both olives and capers provide salty and briny flavors and work great in Mediterranean recipes. If olives are too strong for you, capers are a great substitute! You can also add chickpeas (or garbanzo beans), sun-dried tomatoes, and artichoke hearts. Herbs in a salad dressing can include any of the following: dried or fresh oregano, thyme, or basil. You can also use Italian seasoning or Herbs from Provance.
Recipe tips, recommendations, and add-ins
- Bite-sized ingredients. Cut, slice, or dice all salad ingredients into bite-sized pieces (not too big and not too small).
- Use cherry or grape tomatoes and slice each one in half. I like to use tomatoes of both yellow and red color. Regular tomatoes work too, but cherry tomatoes make a better presentation and usually hold up better in a salad, especially if you make it ahead.
- Add pitted olives and slice them into smaller pieces. Olives tend to have a strong, pronounced flavor, so cutting them into smaller bites really helps mellow that strong flavor.
- Add a mixture of kalamata and green olives. For me, kalamata olives offer a gentler flavor.
Make-ahead tips
- This salad can be made up to 5 hours in advance.
- Slice and chop all salad ingredients (except avocado) and keep them covered and refrigerated until ready to serve.
- Slice and add avocado only right before serving to avoid browning.
- For best results, keep the salad dressing separate and add it only when serving.
How to store it
- Store the leftover salad in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, but no longer.
- Tip: If you plan on refrigerating the salad for a day or two, don't add avocado and the dressing. Add them right before serving.
What to serve with Greek salad
Grilled meats, such as chicken, beef, pork, lamb, and salmon pair well with the freshness of the Greek salad. You can also serve this salad with your favorite pizza, pasta, or even lightly charred pita bread. And, if you want specific dinner recommendations to go along with the Greek salad, here are some ideas:
- Lemon Shrimp Orzo
- Sausage Orecchiette with Spinach and Tomatoes
- Cilantro-Lime Chicken and Corn
- Basil Pesto Tomato Mozzarella Chicken Bake
Don't call this a "Greek" salad. We don't use lemon, basil, or thyme in our dressing for a Horiatiki salad. We also don't waste our time with tiny cherry tomatoes so you can also stop recommending that. Feta is also salty so you're just making a salt lick. Drop the black pepper and use bell pepper in the actual salad.